Abdulrahman Alfozan was arrested on October 9 after it was discovered that he had hidden an encrypted recording device inside an OpenAI building in San Francisco.
A Saudi national arrested for planting a recording device in an OpenAI building was in constant touch with a member of the Saudi Royal Family, US prosecutors have said.
The US deemed the 35-year-old a flight risk and denied bail, pending trial.
Alfozan was arrested just days before he was scheduled to fly to Saudi Arabia on a one-way ticket, they added. (Also read: OpenAI engineer arrested over hidden recording device had booked one-way ticket to Saudi ) “He has ample resources—including his significant compensation from a decade of high-tech employment in the Bay Area and at least two bank accounts in Saudi Arabia—and what appears to be considerable support from a foreign government,” the court filing said.
His extended family resides in Saudi Arabia, and he no longer has job or family ties in the United States.
In a court filing in California, US prosecutors said that Abdulrahman Alfozan’s wife and infant son departed the US for Saudi Arabia shortly after his arrest on business-class tickets paid for by a Saudi military official. US prosecutors further claimed Alfozan was in “frequent communication… with a member of the Saudi royal family”. with a member of the Saudi Royal Family , including as recently as October 5, 2026,” the court document stated.
